Division One Youth League Round 1 Review

This competition has been showing a tremendous improvement over the past few years and I am expecting that trend to continue throughout 2011.
A very warm welcome is extended to competition newcomers Balmain East Tigers, Inter Lions, Nepean and Northbridge.
Every player, coach, team and club kicks off a new season full of hope, promise and optimism and I wish each and every one of you the very best of good fortune for this campaign.
Regular readers will know that I will not pay much attention to the various competition tables until the season has settled into stride and that usually takes until at least Round 5 when the ladder begins to take a definite shape. Even then, we can anticipate many changes as the season evolves through to the finals series.
As always, I can only visit one venue each match day and I will once again try to see every team play at least once during the competition season. This means that I could do with some help in producing The Youth League Report from coaches, managers and conveners in the form of short (and hopefully unbiased) match reports including the names of the goal scorers. If you can help me, please email your report to barrydavis52@hotmail.com before 9.30am on Monday mornings or ring me on 0451 004 091 after 5.00pm on match days or any time on Sundays.
On Saturday I took the short journey to Ron Dine Memorial Reserve to watch all the opening day action between Camden Tigers and Inter Lions and I had the opportunity to chat with the officials of both clubs.
Firstly, Inter Lions head coach Robert Chiandotto was delighted to outline his plans for the club during the coming seasons. ?We are very pleased to be playing in this competition because it provides us with a great opportunity to further develop our youngsters? he said.
?We have a very big junior organization in our club which plays in the Canterbury Association while the base for our Youth League and State League squads is very well catered for with the excellent facilities available at the Crest Complex in Bankstown.?
Mr Chiandotto went on to say, ?Our aim is to consolidate our place in YL over the next two-to-three years and then to try to win things. We know that we will only be able to do that by providing a development pathway for our Grade 13 and Grade 14 players, by providing quality coaching for our Grade 15 and Grade 16 players and by helping our Grade 18 players to take a further step forward by having them work with out First Grade and Grade 20 squads.?
?I know that we will learn a lot from this season and we will use all those lessons to help our players and our club to improve. We have established a relationship with Blacktown City FC through my friendship with their YL head coach Nick Tarquinio and I am certain that it will be beneficial for both clubs in the short and longer terms.?
Camden Tigers convener Rick Carroll was equally positive about the coming season. ?Our aim is, as it has always been, to tread the fine line between developing the players in our squads and producing the best possible results?, he said.
?We have put in place a good quality coaching structure and we have every confidence that we will have another very good season. We must be doing something right because a lot of good players want to come to our club and we are hoping that this will continue to bear fruit for us in terms of good match results and a steady flow of players graduating into our State League squads.?
Mr Carroll continued, ?We have been amongst the top group of clubs over the past few seasons and we are looking to at least maintain, if not improve on that. We have a large junior base playing in the Macarthur District and that provides us with a flow of players coming up through the ranks.?
Club Championship
Gladesville Ryde Magic were the best performed club on the opening day thanks to the twelve points they bagged from their trip to Southern Branch while Hurstville City Minotaurs took eleven points from their matches against Hills Brumbies
St George earned ten of the available points when they faced Hakoah and Mt Druitt Town Rangers went home from Springwood United with eight points in their collective pockets. 
Competition new boys Nepean and Balmain East Tigers shared the spoils at seven apiece while Camden Tigers were very disappointed when they shared the points at seven each with debutantes Inter Lions.
Stanmore Hawks had a solid start to the season when they faced Northbridge on Sunday, collecting eleven valuable points in the process.
Grade 13
Mt Druitt Town Rangers came up with the biggest win in this age group when they accounted for Springwood United with a 5-2 result while Nepean earned the points with a 3-0 result over Balmain East Tigers.
The clash between Camden Tigers and Inter Lions started very slowly indeed with both teams appearing to be suffering from opening day nerves. Although the Tigers had the upper hand throughout the first half in terms of possession and territorial advantage, the teams went to the break with the score locked at 0-0. The match came to life in the second half as Camden seized their opportunities with two goals, the first from a twenty-five metre free kick from Lachlan Rixon and the second from a speculative shot by Nick Stojic from about the same distance. Inter put themselves back into the event with a well worked team goal finished off by Claudio Robbo. The Tigers sealed the win when Eric McGuire struck a shot from thirty metres that gave the Inter goalkeeper absolutely no chance. On the day Camden deserved the points but Inter showed enough to indicate that they will trouble many an opponent during this season.
Gladesville Ryde Magic were 2-0 winners when they faced Southern Branch and Hurstville City took all the points with a 2-0 victory over Minotaurs Hills Brumbies.
St George and Hakoah split the points after they battled out a 1-1 draw while Stanmore Hawks and Northbridge posted exactly the same scoreline. 
Grade 14
St George came up with the goods with a solid 3-0 victory over Hakoah and Mt Druitt Town Rangers showed that they meant business with a 2-0 success when they faced Springwood United.
In a high scoring thriller Hurstville City Minotaurs bagged the points when they were 5-4 winners over Hills Brumbies while Gladesville Ryde Magic edged out Southern Branch with a 1-0 scoreline.
In a knife-edge thriller that kept everyone in the spectator areas on the edge of their seats Nepean shared the spoils with Balmain East Tigers when the scoreboard read 4-4 at the final whistle.
Camden Tigers and Inter Lions turned on the style as their match was very interesting indeed. The Tigers opened the scoring very early through Sam Hall but Inter were far from deterred and they bounced back with a well deserved goal from Nik Damianakis. The very even first half ended with the scores locked at 1-1. Inter looked the more dangerous team during the early stages of the second half and they were rewarded when Manadee Kamano found the back of the net. However, their lead was short-lived as the Tigers manufactured an equaliser almost immediately through Ahmed Alrekabi. On balance, the final scoreline of 2-2 was a fair reflection of the match.
Stanmore Hawks were a bit too good for newcomers Northbridge on Sunday as the Hawks registered a handy 3-0 result.
Grade 15
Camden Tigers began their season with a very handy 3-0 success over Inter Lions but this was far from a one-sided match. In fact, the Tigers? advantage came solely from the fact that they looked slightly sharper in front of goal than their opponents. This was reflected in the fact that Camden went to the break with a 2-0 lead thanks to strikes from Chad Reid and Jaden Cachia. Although Inter really rolled up their sleeves and had a real go at Camden in the second stanza, the Tigers were able to withstand the storm and then they went further ahead when Sam Inzitori converted a penalty kick. The impressions from this match were that both teams will cause most opponents some real concerns.
Southern Branch bagged the points thanks to a healthy 3-1 victory over Gladesville Ryde Magic while Hurstville City Minotaurs produced a 2-0 success over Hills Brumbies.
Balmain East Tigers gave the club its first Youth League win when they came up with a 2-0 result over Nepean and St George got the better of Hakoah with a 2-1 result.
Springwood United and Mt Druitt Town Rangers battled out a scoreless draw while Stanmore Hawks and Northbridge also shared the points when their match finished at 1-1.
Grade 16
In a see-sawing match Inter Lions finally claimed the points when they were victorious over Camden Tigers but the result really was in doubt until the final whistle. The Tigers had taken a 2-0 lead after Jake Astudillo had rattled the net and Nick Holmes had converted a spot kick but the teams went to the break at 2-1 after Ricky Fradel had converted a penalty kick for the Lions. Inter looked far more inspired in the second stanza and they were able to add three more goals through Abe Majok, Ali Fanied and another penalty conversion from Fradel. The difference was that Inter converted their chances into goals while Camden wasted their opportunities.
Hakoah were a bit too good for St George this week as they claimed the points with a 4-1 result while that scoreline was repeated when Gladesville Ryde Magic downed Southern Branch.
Balmain East Tigers produced the goods with a respectable 2-0 success over Nepean and Springwood United edged out Mt Druitt Town Rangers with a 2-1 scoreline.
In a high scoring thriller Hurstville City Minotaurs and Hills Brumbies battled out a 3-3 draw while Stanmore Hawks really turned on the style as the defeated Northbridge 6-0 on Sunday.
Grade 18
What a game the clash between Camden Tigers and Inter Lions turned out to be! Camden made most of the early running and found themselves 2-0 ahead thanks to a double strike from Dean Stepian. Inter clawed their way back into the game when Renwick Sinclair found the back of the net but then the Tigers restored their two goal buffer thanks to a goal from Matt Trotter to go to the interval at 3-1. Substitute Abe Majok narrowed the gap to 3-2 before Camden?s John McPhillips converted a spot kick to take his team out to a 4-2 lead. The Lions then produced an amazing comeback to score the next four goals through G. Ulatis, a double to M. Valente and another goal to Abe Majok to take the score to 6-4. Camden regathered their composure and scored from a penalty spot conversion from McPhillips to make it 6-5. The Tigers very nearly snatched a draw but Inter?s goalkeeper made two fabulous saves late in the game to give his team the maximum points.
Gladesville Ryde Magic pulled out all stops to register a stunning 10-0 victory over Southern Branch and Nepean shaded Balmain East Tigers with a 2-1 result, scoreline that was repeated when St George defeated Hakoah.
In another high scoring nail-biter Hurstville City Minotaurs and Hills Brumbies fought out a 4-4 draw while the clash between Springwood United and Mt Druitt Town Rangers was locked up at 1-1 at the final whistle.
Stanmore Hawks got the better of Northbridge on Sunday when they ran out 4-2 winners.
-By Barry Davis